Last One Standing
by MissAnnBlack
Summary: Kate's been pushed around her whole life. The only shining points were her best friends. Until she meets Emmett. Can he help protect her from her own life? *Rated M for language and lemons* *Em x OC*
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I own nothing except Kate, Amie, and Sarah. I could only hope that Emmett was real. O the fun I would have. *giggle* Hope you enjoy. **

I hated this. Why was I here getting ready to go out? I certainly didn't want to. Unfortunately, though, I had two women practically forcing me to go out. Sarah and Amie were like sisters to me. I loved them. We always joked that we were triplets separated at birth. We just couldn't explain how I was the only white one out of all of us. They were both Latina.

We were all juniors in college. We lived together in an off campus apartment. It was fun living with them. We always had great times together.

"Kate! Hurry your ass up! We need to go!" I heard Amie yell moments before my bedroom door opened. She walked in my room dressed very nice. She looked sexy as hell. There was never any way that I could look anything like that. "You're not even dressed yet? We need to get going soon. You need to get dressed." She didn't care that I was sat in front of my mirror in bra and panties doing my makeup. She walked over to my closet and started going through my clothes. Sarah walked in a moment later. She, too, was already ready to go to the club.

I knew Amie was talking to me but I blocked it out. I didn't want to hear, yet again, that I needed to go shopping for better clothes.

As I perfected my make up and hair I thought about the past few years of my dreadful life. The darkness had left about a year ago but that didn't change what had happened. For the first few months after, I was in deep depression. I wouldn't talk to anyone. All I wanted to do was sit in my room. I had even experimented with drugs to get past the ache and hurt I felt.

After a few months of the moping and feeling sorry for myself, I decided it was time to change. I wasn't going to let anyone, no matter who they were, treat me like that again. I started taking self defense classes and my sisters, Amie and Sarah, helped me remake myself. They worked with my therapist to help me with my self esteem.

They had been wonderful through this whole thing. No matter what, they stuck by me. No matter how many times I yelled at them, told them they were nothing to me and I didn't want their friendship any more, they were there for me. They were there to help me through everything.

That's what tonight was all about. It was my birthday and they had decided that they were going to make sure I had fun for the first time in a long time on my special day. So we were going to a club whether I liked it or not. At least that's what they had told me.

"Earth to Kate!" I heard Sarah say, breaking me from my thoughts. I blinked my eyes and focused them on her. "Here," she said holding out an outfit. "Put these on."

She held a black corset type bustier and faded low rise jeans. They were obviously going to make sure I was sexy tonight. A part of me didn't mind because it wanted to get laid and fast. I hadn't had a man in over a year. In that time B.O.B. and I had gotten very close, though. I giggled at that thought. B.O.B. was my "Battery operated buddy".

I quickly got dressed and went over to my closet and got out shoes that would match this outfit perfectly. They were black platforms with three inch heels. Once I had those on my feet I grabbed my silver "Dream" necklace and heart bracelet and slipped them on. I picked my cell phone up off the table next to my bed and slipped it in my pocket.

I walked out of the room. My friends following close behind. They probably wanted to make sure I finished getting ready in a timely fashion.

Half an hour later we were at the club. We lived in Seattle, Washington so this club was rather large compared to some. It was almost ten so the club was already filling up. Once we had paid our way in, I walked straight up to the bar. I needed a drink. I wasn't too sure if I would be able to make it through the night if I didn't have lots of alcohol in my system.

I walked up to the bar and watched as the cute bartender made his way over to me. "What can I get for you tonight, beautiful?" he asked me. I blushed. No one had ever called me that.

"Just a 'Sex on the beach', please." He smirked as he got me my drink.

He handed me my drink and I paid him. I turned and saw that Sarah and Amie had already found some guys to dance with. I was jealous for a moment that they could be so free. I could never just dance with any guy that came up to me.

I downed my drink, got another and walked out onto the dance floor. I figured I might as well try too have fun while I was here. I made my way into the mass of bodies on the floor next to my best friends and just started dancing. Kesha's "We R Who We R" came on. It made me think of my friends.

The three of us used to do this all the time. We always came to the club together. I was a great dancer at one time. Now, though, I wasn't so positive. I did my best though. I worked my hips and tried to look sexy, tried to look like I knew what I was doing.

I suddenly felt someone come up behind me and start dancing with me. I felt their arms come around my waist. My mystery partner started moving with me. I bent in front of him and worked my ass into his groin. I didn't care if I knew him or not, I was here to have fun, right? So why not do whatever I wanted for once in my life?

I worked myself into him and he didn't seem to mind if the growing pressure against my ass and his fingers pushing into my hips was any indication. I smiled to myself and started pushing myself harder.

I caught Sarah's eye. "Is he hot?" I mouthed to her. She quickly nodded her head at me and I smiled again.

As the song ended and Nelly's "Just a Dream" came on I turned to face him. It wasn't a really fast song so I put my arms around his neck. While I positioned myself so that his leg was between mine, I smiled at him. He wasn't just hot. He was sexy as hell. I ground myself into his leg. He bent down so his lips were right next to my ear. "I'm Emmett."

"I'm Kate," I replied. The feel of his hot breath against my sensitive skin, sent shivers along my spine that I hadn't felt in a long time.

I continued to grind myself on his leg and sway my hips to the music. Again his lips were at my ear. "Sexy, if you keep that up I'm gonna nut in my pants."

I couldn't help that smile that came to my lips any more than I could stop the giggle that escaped them. This was a night for firsts. I had never been called "beautiful" or "sexy" and never in my life had I brought a man to the point where he almost came in his pants.

The song ended and he walked me over to the bar. I sat on the stool and reveled in the feeling of his hand at the base of my back. He smiled at me and asked what I wanted.

"Sex on the beach," I answered with out thinking what I was really saying.

He smirked at me and lowered himself so he could speak in my ear yet again. "Oh, honey, that can be arranged." I blushed, looking away shyly before he could see the blush that quickly rose to my cheeks. I felt his fingers rubbing my cheek. I slowly looked up to meet his eyes. "You're absolutely gorgeous when you do that. You know that?"

I whispered, "Thank you."

"Now what do you want….. To drink?"

"Sex on the beach, please."

He bought my drinks the rest of the night and never left my side. At around two in the morning, Sarah and Amie came up to me. "You ready to leave?" Amie asked me as I continued dancing with Emmett.

I nodded at her and looked at Emmett. "I need to go. It was nice meeting you."

He grabbed my hand. "Let me walk you to your car at least." I shyly nodded and the four of us walked out of the club into the glorious fresh air. I hadn't realized how stuffy and congested it was in the club until I walked into the parking lot.

"It was nice meeting you tonight, Emmett. It was great dancing with you," I said to him once we were at Amie's car.

"Trust me, it was all my pleasure. Maybe we can get together some time? Hang out? Maybe I can take you to dinner?"

"Maybe." I handed him my phone. "Give me your number." He quickly added his number to my contacts. When he handed it back to me, I called his phone so he would have my number too. "Give me a call sometime," I told him with a wink. I climbed into the car.

And the interrogation began. "So what's big guy's name?" Sarah asked, turning around in her seat so she could face me.

"Emmett," I said from the backseat. I stared out the window, watching the night fly by, and I could feel the smile on my face as I said his name.

"what's he like?" Amie asked me.

"He's so sweet. He never tried to kiss me or anything. He bought all my drinks. He's a gentleman."

"Exactly what you need, if you ask me," Sarah told me.

Amie nodded. "So are you gonna call him?"

"I don't know, Amie. I mean I just met him and after what happened last year, I'm nervous about guys."

I watched as their faces fell. They knew exactly what I meant and why I felt that way. Even though tonight had been wonderful; and I had Emmett to thank for that; I knew it wouldn't be too long before the darkness descended again.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I own nothing but Kate, Amie, Sarah. They are mine. I wish Emmett was mine though. *giggle***

The week flew by. I spent every day locked in my room, painting. Painting was everything to me. It was my freedom. It was my quiet place. It was my serenity. When I was painting, I wasn't in my life. I was _in _the painting. I was the painting.

I started out as a blank canvas and I slowly came into light. I was slowly brought to life by the colorful brushstrokes. I was the people I painted. I could escape while I was painting. I could be anywhere other than where I was. I could be anyone but who I was. I could have any life I wanted. I could be a rich person in New York City. I could be a homeless person living on the street wanting nothing more than a few dollars to buy a meal. I could be a carefree animal happily rubbing myself against someone's leg. I could be anything or anyone I desired.

I spent the whole week painting. I didn't eat much or drink much at all. I had only slept about a total of 10 hours in a week. All I wanted to do was paint. I couldn't bring myself out of the painting for anything. I was painting. I couldn't be bothered to do anything else.

Amie and Sarah tried to talk to me about Emmett. They tried to get me to go out to eat with them. I just couldn't be bothered. Especially since this was the first time in two years that I had wanted to paint. The first time I had had the inspiration and "want to" to write.

Since the first day I met _him_ I hadn't wanted to paint. I didn't even realize it at first. In fact I didn't realize I hadn't painted until it had been a year since the last time I even looked at a canvas. When it hit me, I was surprised and upset. That night I went straight home and grabbed all my supplies. I tried to paint. I tried to force something, _anything_, to come out of me. Nothing would come. Nothing worth while anyways.

I remember all I could get out of me was shit work. I remember getting so frustrated I just threw everything away. I couldn't stand to look at it anymore. All it did was frustrate me further. I had once been an awesome painter and now all I could do was shit. I couldn't do anything. So I threw all my paints and canvases away. They were thrown straight into the nearest dumpster.

So when the inspiration was all of a sudden there Monday morning, I was surprised. I knew exactly what I wanted to paint. I knew exactly what I wanted people to see.

I drove straight to the art store and bought everything I needed. Then I hurried back home and locked myself in my room. And that's where I had stayed for the better part of the week.

All of a sudden it was Friday. I stood back and looked at what I had painted. I had just completed it. It was a beautiful painting of sunset across the water, with a ray of light shining through the clouds. I took a deep breath and blew it out in a rush.

I turned and walked out of my room. Amie and Sarah were sitting on the sofa in the living room. They looked up at me with shocked looks on their faces. "She finally emerges," Sarah said.

Amie giggled next to her. "I see that. So, are you finally ready to rejoin the living, Kate?"

I gave her a sarcastic look and walked to the kitchen. I was suddenly starving. I should have known they would follow me. "So are you done with it?" I heard the excitement in Amie's voice as she asked me. I had a grin on my face as I fixed myself a sandwich. I nodded to Amie and heard them both run toward my bedroom.

I was just sitting at the table, getting ready to devour my sandwich, when they walked back in. "Kate," Sarah said. I looked up at her. She had shock, yet again, written all over her face.

"That is wonderful," Sarah finished for Amie.

I shrugged. "Its alright for the first time painting in two years. It could have been better."

"What are you talking about? It's gorgeous and I'm so happy that you're back to painting. I know how much you loved it and how much it hurt you to not have the heart to do it," Amie said. She walked over to me and gave me a huge hug. Sarah quickly came over to me and hugged me too.

I felt a smile come across my face finally, a smile I hadn't smiled in a long time, a smile of contentment, of accomplishment. "Y'all have no clue how it felt. Like I'm just sitting there at a stop light and all of a sudden I knew what I wanted to paint. I couldn't wait to get back here and paint. I couldn't let it go. I couldn't _not_ paint it.

"It felt so good to have the paintbrush back in my hand, to see that painting start coming to life. Then when it was done, I stood back and it was like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. Like I had had this weight on me for years because I couldn't paint. It was so strange." A thought came to my mind. "Hey where's my phone? Do y'all know where my phone is?"

I couldn't sit still. It was like I was on drugs or something. But the only thing I was high on, for the first time in a while, was life. I got up from the table, abandoning my food, and started searching for my phone. I found it at the bottom of my purse. It was dead so I had to put it on the charger. I hooked it up in the kitchen and turned it on. The only calls or texts I missed were from Emmett.

"Your parents tried calling the house. Once they found out you were painting they were so happy. They said to call when you came out of it," Amie said to me. I nodded at her and dialed Emmett.

"Hello?" he asked when he picked up his end.

"Hey, Emmett. Um, I don't know if you remember me but -"

He cut me off. "Of course I remember you, Kate. I'm actually surprised to hear from you. I thought you were avoiding me." I could hear the smile in his voice.

I chuckled. "Well, in all honesty, I was avoiding the world. I had some things to get done this week. I haven't even really talked to my roommates all week. So, um, how are you doing?"

"I'm doing great. I've been wondering if you wanted to go out to dinner tonight. I would love to get to know you some more without the blaring music." He chuckled.

I thought for a moment. It wasn't really a hard decision to make. Every time I came up for air from the painting, it was Emmett that I was thinking about. Of course, if I really analyzed where my inspiration had come from, I think it was probably meeting Emmett that triggered it, at the very least. "Sure, I would love to. What time and where?"

"How about I pick you up at seven?" I could hear that he had a huge grin on his face.

"That sounds great." I quickly gave him directions to my apartment and we hung up. For the first time since I made the call, I looked at my friends. They had smiles on their faces. "What is running through y'alls minds?"

"Oh, I'm just thinking it might just be time to go shopping!" Sarah said. I looked at the clock on the stove. It read five o'clock.

"I hate to burst your bubble there, Sarah, but I only have a few hours before he gets here. There's not enough time to go shopping and get ready." A frown crossed her face in an instant, but was quickly replaced with a smile.

"That's alright. I have a dress that would be perfect," Sarah said getting up from the table. "You go take a shower and stuff. Amie and I will worry about the rest."

I took the time to finish my sandwich. Once I was done, I got up, put my plate in the dishwasher and walked into the bathroom. I was beginning to get nervous. I turned on the hot water in the shower and looked at myself in the mirror. I didn't want to analyze what I saw. It would make me even more nervous.

I hated the look of my eyes though. I looked like I had gotten in a fight and someone gave me two black eyes. I wished I had time to take a nap. I needed sleep desperately. Oh well, no time for that.

I stepped into the shower and washed myself clean, taking my time, not caring about anything else at the moment. When I was done, I stepped out, wrapping a towel around myself. I put lotion all over my body. I blow dried my hair and brushed it out. I walked back to my room and looked at the clock. It read six thirty. I still had plenty of time.

I sat down at my mirror and started applying my make up. I took my time again, really wanting to make myself look beautiful. I really liked Emmett the other night and wanted to make a good impression. Of course, if he had waited a week to hear back from me, then he must really like me already.

When I was done Sarah came in to give me the dress she had for me. "I think this would look great on you." She held up the dress. It was a black form fitting dress. It had small straps on the shoulders and a black strap around the waist. She was right. It would gorgeous and would look great on me.

I slid it on and it felt wonderful. I loved this dress. I looked great in it too. She held up shoes to go with the dress. They were leather platform sandal like shoes with three inch heels. I put those on and stood up. I went over to my jewelry case and took out my silver dream necklace again with my black bangle bracelet.

I walked over to the floor length mirror and looked at myself. "Sarah, thanks for the dress."

"No problem. You look wonderful and if he doesn't even try to make a move, you need to rush him to the ER." I gave her a look that let her know I didn't understand. "Because if he doesn't try to make a move on you he obviously doesn't have a pulse. Any man with a pulse would want you. You look hot as hell. Shit, if I were into chicks, I'd be making a move."

I couldn't help but laugh at her. Sarah was crazy, but I love her.

I heard the door bell ring. My nerves shot through the roof. I could hardly breath. I wrapped my arms around my stomach as the butterflies started their attack. Sarah took hold of my shoulders and looked me in the eyes. "Kate, its all gonna be OK. It's just dinner. That's all it ever has to be. You hold the reigns on this." She turned around and picked up my purse. She took out my wallet and slipped some money into it. She looked up at me. "Kate, if things get too weird, I'm giving you money for a cab. Your cell is in here, too. You walk into the bathroom and call a cab if you have to. Do you understand me?"

I nodded at her. She handed me my purse and put her hand on my back, guiding me from the room. I walked on shaking legs to the living room where I found Amie and Emmett.

I walked over to Emmett and gave him a hug. "Hi," I whispered to him.

"Well, hello again, beautiful."

I turned to my friends and smiled nervously. "Emmett, this is Amie and Sarah. I'll be back later, girls."

They smiled and waved and we left. He walked me down the stairs to his Jeep. He opened the door for me and waited while I got comfortable. As he rounded the hood and got in, I took a look around. The Jeep was very clean. That put a smile on my face. I loved riding in clean vehicles. I had always thought that the way you kept your vehicle said a lot about you. Right now Emmett's Jeep was telling me a lot about him.

He sat in the driver's seat and looked at me with a smile as he started the car. The car ride was quiet. We made small talk about the weather until we pulled up outside _Volterra_. After parking, Emmett got out first and then came to the passenger side to help me out.

As I hopped down from the Jeep, Emmett took my arm. Looking into my eyes, he said, "Have I told you tonight how stunning you look?" I could say nothing. So I just shook my head. "Well, please forgive me then. You look absolutely amazing tonight. I may have to go find a baseball bat to beat all the other guys off you. They're going to be insanely jealous that I have you on my arm and they don't." I looked away blushing with embarrassment. No one had ever given me such a nice complement before.

He opened the door for me and we walked in. He walked up to the maitre'd and said, "Reservations for McCarty,, please?"

"Yes, sir. We have a table ready for you. Right this way," the maitre'd said, grabbing menus and walking us to our table. We were led to a table that looked out over the water. The view was gorgeous. We could see the boats, the Lighthouse, and the moon and stars twinkling on the water.

Emmett pulled my chair out for me and then went to sit in his chair. He ordered us a bottle of wine and then looked at me.

"So, Kate, what had you so preoccupied this week?" he asked leaning on the table.

I should have expected this question and been prepared on how to answer it. Truth of the matter was, though, that I wasn't. I didn't know if I should tell him the truth. Let alone how much of the truth to tell.

"Well," I started looking at my wine glass and running my fingers along the top edge of it. "I've been painting."

"You paint? That's awesome. I would love to see the work that kept you away from me for so long."

"Well, I don't know about that one. It was the first painting I've done in two years. So it's kind of rough." I really didn't want to show him. I was positive it wasn't as good as Sarah and Amie had said. Plus, it took so much of me to do that painting. I out so much of myself into it. I just wasn't sure if I was ready to show that to him yet.

"I doubt that. But what do you mean that you haven't painted in two years. It's obviously something that you love doing, if you literally lock yourself away for a week to complete it. Why would you stop doing it for two years?"

I chuckled a little. This was the part I was worried about. "Well, there are some things in my past that happened. For those two years I just didn't have the heart. I didn't have the inspiration. I tried to paint but it wasn't working. So I threw all of it away. Until Monday. For some reason on Monday, the inspiration was just there."

"That's good. I'm glad that something in your life brought back the inspiration." He slid his hand across the table to take mine. He held my hand as he continued to speak. "But, Kate, look at me." I looked up and met his gaze. "I don't know what happened back then, but I can tell it was huge. I can tell it really hurt you. Maybe one day, you'll let me in. Let me help you. I want you to know, though, that whenever you do want to talk about it, I'm here. I'm just a phone call away." He squeezed my hand.

Is that what I wanted? After all this time, was there really someone, other than my sisters, who actually cared? How did I know I could trust this man? This man that I had known for a week? I didn't even know him. I decided there was one way I was going to get to know him and that was to question him about himself.

"So, what do you do, Emmett McCarty?"

"Well, I graduated college last year and I'm now the football coach over at Roosevelt High. What do you do, other than paint?"

"I'm a junior over at Everest College. I'm getting my degree in Social Work. I want to help kids who are in abusive households. No kid should ever go through that." I knew that as I said the last sentence my voice got quiet. I couldn't help that. There was nothing that I could do to stop it.

We talked for a while longer. But eventually it was time to go home. He walked me up to the door to my apartment. I hated to see the night end but as the saying goes, "all good things must come to an end".

As I fished the keys out of my purse, I turned to Emmett. "Thank you. I had a great time. We should do it again soon."

He put his hands on my waist as my hands found my keys. "Wait, I'm not ready for it to end just yet." I watched, shocked, as he leaned toward me. He stopped inches from my lips and looked into my eyes. Whatever he was looking for, he must have found it. He lips locked onto mine in a searing kiss. It was light but somehow passionate.

I knew right then that Emmett had been my inspiration.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: SM owns Emmett. :( Wish I did though. **

**Also, a special thanks goes out to Val who helped me tremendously with this chap. Even though she would deny it! LOL I love you Val!**

It had been two weeks since my impromptu date with Emmett. He had been so sweet. And the kiss had been absolutely wonderful. Every night since, he could be found on my couch, with me in his lap, watching TV. We would end the night by making out. But he never tried to take it any further.

He had taken me on a few more dates. He had taken me to the zoo, where we had walked around together all day, holding hands. It was so sweet. When we got to the polar bears, I looked at him and told him, "Polar bears remind me of you." He gave me a confused look as he chuckled. "Because they can be cute and cuddly but when you piss them off, they're mean as hell."

"And how would you know that I can be mean as hell when I'm mad?" he asked nuzzling my neck.

"I can just tell. I know that if anyone really pissed you off, you'd beat the hell out of them. I know you'd protect me from anything that tried to hurt me," I said as I leaned up on my tip toes and kissed his lips.

We walked around for a while longer and found the flamingos. "This right here is what reminds me of you," he said wrapping his arm around my waist.

I turned a bit and looked at him. I chuckled a bit. "Oh really? And how is that?"

"Well first of all they are absolutely beautiful creatures. Then there's the fact that they obviously love the color pink." I couldn't help but chuckle a little at that. He had been constantly picking on me for my love of pink. I wasn't a girly girl at all, but that didn't mean I couldn't love that color, right? "They are loyal. They're short." He patted my head. I elbowed him in the side a little. "So, yeah, they remind me of you."

I loved remembering that day. It made me feel like we were getting closer and closer to each other.

One night we stayed up all night watching "Supernatural" on DVD. Every time something would scare me, he would hold me close and run his fingers through my hair. Every time Sam and Dean would make me cry, Emmett would be right there wiping my tears away with his thumb or kissing them away with his lips. At times, his sweetness only made me cry harder.

Never in my life had someone cared so much for me. I didn't care that we had only been together for a few weeks, or that we had met in a club. I knew that he cared for me. Something no one else had ever done, other than Amie and Sarah. I never would have dared to imagine or hope that anyone else would think so highly of me as to care about me. To care that something made me cry, or something scared me. No one had ever kissed away my tears. No one had ever held me when I was scared. It meant a lot to me that Emmett wanted to do those things for me.

My phone vibrated in my pocket, bringing me out of my thoughts. I looked at the caller ID as I answered. "Hey, Baby. What's up?"

"I was just thinking about you. What are you up to?"

"I'm actually walking to Biology right now. What about you?" I asked as I walked up the steps of the building.

"I was just sitting here, thinking about you."

"Oh, is that right? Well, aren't you supposed to be working? Ya know, thinking up new, creative plays to stump the competition?" I giggled.

"Well, I've been trying but see there's this woman that has been popping into my brain all day. I can't seem to think of anything but her. She's consuming me."

A huge smile crossed my face. "Is that right? Well, I hope she's worth it."

"Oh, believe me. She is. She's so worth every minute of my life."

My smile grew. I was surprised that was possible. "Well, Emmett, I need to get to class. I'll text you when I'm out alright?" He agreed and we hung up.

I walked into Biology and sat in my seat. Minutes later, the professor walked in and started his lecture. I hated him. He always talked in a monotone voice, which only made the class drone on longer. That's how it seemed anyways. Thankfully, I sat in the back of the class. So I was able to lose focus without being noticed. I was always good in science. So losing focus didn't hurt me too much. So long as I got the basics of what he was teaching, anyways.

An hour later, I walked out of the class. As I was pulling my phone out of my purse, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I figured it would be Sarah or Amie. They were the only ones on campus who ever talked to me, but to my surprise, it wasn't. I didn't know the girl standing in front of me.

"Can I help you?" I asked her.

"Um, well, you don't know me," she said nervously, "but I know something about you." My eyebrow rose at that comment. "You're dating Emmett McCarty right?"

"Yes, and?" I was getting frustrated with her. I didn't know this girl. So, who was she to be talking to me about Emmett?

"Well, please don't get mad but I used to date him." She held up her hands in front of her. "Now trust me, I don't want him back. I just wanted to warn you. Like I said, I used to date him. The only reason we even broke up was because he started cheating on me." That peaked my interest. A part of me wanted to shove her away from me and tell her to stay the fuck away from me, but another part, felt like she was telling me the truth. That part that knew from the beginning that Emmett was too good to be true. That part of me that knew no one would ever truly care about me. No one ever could.

I took hold of her arm and dragged her to the fountain in front of the Science Building. I sat down as she did and looked into her eyes. "What are you talking about? Why would Emmett cheat?"

"Well, see, I'm one of those girls that looks pretty on the outside but I had tons of issues when I met Emmett. I had gone with a group of my girls to the club. He started dancing with me, sweet talked me, and had me falling for him. I don't know what made him cheat but I know his routine. I know he finds girls with issues at the club, gets them to fall for him, and then cheats on them."

I was in a daze. Everything about what she had said, sounded exactly like me. Emmett had somehow zeroed in on me at the club that night. He had sweet talked me and gotten me to fall for him. He was more than likely cheating on me. Was he? Was Emmett cheating on me? I knew he was too good to be true.

"Than-Thank you for telling me." I got up and walked to my car.

I don't remember how I got home but next thing I knew I was in my apartment. I dropped my purse on the table by the door and walked slowly, in a daze still, into the kitchen. I stopped dead in my tracks when I saw them.

There on the counter were at least a dozen lavender colored roses. I walked up to them slowly, eyeing them as if they were about to jump up and bite me. I got close enough and slowly reached out to grab the card attached. With two fingers, I delicately pulled the card out from the bouquet. I saw my name on the little envelope and all I felt was rage. I took the card and the flowers over to the garbage disposal.

I dumped the offending roses petal side down into the disposal and turned it on. I heard the noise from the machine and smiled a tight, grim smile. I felt a small amount of satisfaction as I pulled them out and looked at the tore up petals. I took them and put them in the garbage can and walked away.

I sat on the couch in the living room. About an hour later, Sarah came out of her room and went into the kitchen. She came back out moments later with the roses in her hand. She looked at me. "Alright, what happened? I mean this morning you were all starry eyed over Emmett. This after noon he sends you flowers and you throw them in the trash? What happened, sis?"

I told her everything mystery girl had said. I couldn't believe how easy it was to tell. I guess I was just so numb that I wasn't feeling anything right now. All I felt was the numb. I guess that was a good thing. I didn't want the tears. I didn't want to feel my heart break.

As I finished dumping my sorrows on her yet again, I heard Sarah's intake of breath. Then the fiery Latina that rarely showed itself, came out in a stream of Spanish profanities. "Damn puto que es mejor que no veo mas porque yo voy a romper la cara!"

A slight giggle escaped my lips. "Damn, sis. The tiger escape it's cage again?"

She sat with me and hugged me for a while. It felt good. Unfortunately, I heard my phone ring. I looked at the Caller ID and hit ignore. I did not want to talk to Emmett right now. So, I threw my phone against the wall. At least now he couldn't call.

Sarah gave me a strange look as my phone shattered and crashed to the floor. I shrugged at her and said "Emmett." She nodded and we continued watching TV.

Later that evening, all three of us were watching TV. When Amie got home from classes, Sarah filled her in on what was going on. She immediately sat on my other side, on the couch, and started watching TV with us. Everything else was forgotten. Until the door bell rang.

I slowly got up and answered it. I peeked through the peephole and saw my worst nightmare. I quickly turned and put my back against the door, breathing heavily. I wasn't sure what I should do. He knocked on the door again. I still didn't move.

Amie walked in. "Who was at the door?"

"Emmett," I mouthed at her.

"Go away you fucking cheating asshole!" she yelled at him through the door.

"What are you talking about? I'm not cheating! What the fuck?" I heard from the other side.

"She knows that you've been cheating on your other girlfriends. You won't be able to cheat on her, you asshole. Now go away!"

"Amie, I'm not giving up on her. I have never cheated on anyone. Never! So open this door, so I can try to fix things with her. Please. I won't leave until you do. I won't give up on us. I won't."

"Too bad. I won't have you getting us in trouble for being so loud when it's your cheating, whining ass. Now go away so we can get to sleep. Ya know, some people do have things to do tomorrow."

I looked at her. "What do I do?" I mouthed to her.

She grabbed my arm and pulled me into the living room. I laid down on the couch, hoping he would go away. That didn't happen though. I heard him continue to argue and beg me to come talk to him for hours.

Finally, I fell asleep around midnight. I vaguely remember being woken up and helped into bed at some point.

I woke up the next morning, rolling over to look at the clock. I saw it was six in the morning. Damn, time to get up and get dressed for another boring day of classes.

As I was getting the things ready for my shower, I heard Sarah's voice. I opened the door a bit and listened in.

"OW!" It sounded like Emmett. Wait, Emmett was still here? He really stayed the night outside my door?

"Wake up you ass. Get your whiny, cheating, man whore ass away from my door. You're stinking up the whole damn hallway. You look like shit, Emmett. Well, it serves you right. With what you've done you deserve to sleep on the floor."

I didn't hear anything after that and decided that I should go ahead and take my shower. After I was done getting dressed, I grabbed my bag and walked out the door. I was hoping that Emmett would be gone. I was hoping he had decided to give up, but all hopes were dashed after I opened the door.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him sitting there on the floor. He looked pitiful. His clothes were wrinkled. His hair was a mess. He looked…he looked horrible. I couldn't believe it. Was this really the same clean cut, clean shaved guy that I had been dating? Why would he still be here? Hadn't he gotten the hint? I didn't want him anymore.

I didn't even say anything to him. Didn't even turn and fully look at him. I just walked away. I had classes to get to, after all.

"Kate! Kate, please talk to me," I heard him say as he was chasing me down the hall.

"Emmett, go away. I don't want to see you anymore. Don't you get that?" I said as I kept walking.

He grabbed a hold of my arm and spun me around to face him. I looked at his hand and then at him. Giving him a nasty look. Letting him know that he needed to remove his hand before I started screaming. He quickly removed his hand and looked at me. "Kate, don't I at least deserve the chance to defend myself?"

I thought about that for a minute. I didn't understand how he thought he could defend what he had done, but I thought I at least owed him the chance. "Fine, but I have to be to class soon. So you better hurry up and talk as I walk." I turned and started walking, not caring in the least if he did follow me.

"Can you at least tell me what I did? Kate, I don't even know what I did to upset you so bad. Please."

I looked at him. He looked sincere. He looked like he truly had no idea what he had done. I felt horrible. Maybe I should talk to him. "I had a nice little visit from an ex of your's yesterday. She told me all about you."

He stopped me. "What do you mean? What did she tell you?"

"She told me how you met her at a club, got her to fall for you, and then you went and cheated on her. So I'm ending this," I pointed between the two of us, "before you have a chance to do the same to me. I refuse to be treated like she was." I turned and started walking again.

"What? I've never cheated in my life and I especially wouldn't cheat on you. I like you too much. There's no one else I want to be with. Please, you have to believe me. I would never cheat on anyone. I have too much respect for women to do that. You know I do. Why would I cheat?"

Something about the look in his eyes, made me second guess myself. It made me rethink what I was doing. Was I going to believe some woman I had never met? Or was I going to believe the guy I was falling fast for? The man that I had started dreaming about. The man that I saw with my children in my dreams.

"I don't know, Emmett. I don't. What I do know is that right now I have to get to class. Give me time. Let me think."

"I can do that." With that I was off to class. I wasn't as sure of myself as I was when I woke up this morning. Now I wasn't sure about much of anything. The only thing I was sure about was that I had started to fall in love with Emmett before this mystery woman had shown up. Now, I really had to think. I had to figure out what the hell I was going to do about everything.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thanks so much to my new beta, xxxlauraaxxx. She's awesome and I love her! **

**I don't own Emmett, Paul or Jake. *sobs* I wish I owned them though. I wish they were mine!**

Em's POV

This was hell. I swear it. I had to sit here at my computer doing stupid shit when all I wanted to do was be with Kate. It was driving me crazy. I was falling for this girl. FAST! The thing was though, I didn't really know her. She wouldn't talk about anything before me. She wouldn't talk about her parents. She wouldn't talk about her last boyfriend. She wouldn't talk about why she had given up painting.

At first I thought I would just let her go about it. She would talk when she felt like it. I was worried that day would never come. She never showed any signs of talking about it. Never seemed like she was getting close to letting go. It worried me. I mean here I was falling for a girl that I didn't really know.

I decided to call her. I had to at least hear her voice. I grabbed the receiver off its cradle and started dialing the familiar numbers. The numbers that I had memorized after only a few times of dialing them.

She answered quickly. "Hey, Baby. What's up?"

"I was just thinking about you. What are you up to?" I asked her. I couldn't help the goofy grin that crossed my face at the sound of her voice.

"I'm actually walking to Biology right now. What about you?" she asked me. I could hear a smile on her voice too.

"I was just sitting here, thinking about you."

"Oh, is that right? Well, aren't you supposed to be working? Ya know, thinking up new, creative plays to stump the competition?" The sound of her giggle was music to my ears. Who would have thought that Emmett McCarty would act like this? Who would have imagined that I would be like some love struck teenager?

"Well, I've been trying but see there's this woman that has been popping into my brain all day. I can't seem to think of anything but her. She's consuming me."

"Is that right? Well, I hope she's worth it."

"Oh, believe me. She is. She's so worth every minute of my life." OK, who had possessed me? This wasn't me. I wasn't this guy. I wasn't the guy that talked like this to a girl. I needed to call my shrink.

"Well, Emmett, I need to get to class. I'll text you when I'm out alright?"

I agreed and hung up. I got back to work but it was still not keeping my attention. I wanted so badly to be with Kate. I couldn't stop thinking about her. I couldn't stop myself from watching the clock, waiting for time for her to get out of class. I watched as the minutes slowly ticked by.

After what felt like an eternity, it was time that she should be texting me. What was weird, though, was that she never did. I waited and I waited but she never called. She never texted. By the time I got off work, I was worried about her.

I was hurriedly walking to my Jeep after work, when a thought stopped me. What if she had simply just gotten caught up with another painting. She could have gotten an idea in class and rushed home to work on it. She probably was so caught up in the painting idea that she never even thought to text me. Yeah, that's it. She's just home painting her fingers off.

I decided to go by her place to make sure. That ended up being a bad idea, to an extent. I got there and knocked on the door and that's when my world crashed down around me.

"Go away you fucking cheating asshole!" I heard yelled through the door after my knock. It sounded like Amie. I stared at the door, confused. What had I done? I hadn't cheated.

"What are you talking about? I'm not cheating! What the fuck?" I yelled through the door. This wasn't making sense. Why wouldn't Kate talk to me? Why was it Amie?

"She knows that you've been cheating on your other girlfriends. You won't be able to cheat on her, you asshole. Now go away!" What? I had to get Kate to talk to me. Scratch that. I had to get Amie to let me talk to Kate. I had to get this straightened out and fast.

"Amie, I'm not giving up on her. I have never cheated on anyone. Never! So open this door, so I can try to fix things with her. Please. I won't leave until you do. I won't give up on us. I won't."

"Too bad. I won't have you getting us in trouble for being so loud when it's your cheating, whining ass. Now go away so we can get to sleep. Ya know, some people do have things to do tomorrow."

"Amie! You have to let me talk to her. You aren't her bodyguard. Please let me talk to her, Amie. I can't fix this if I don't know what I did wrong! I've never cheated. Where would she get an idea like that?" I continued ranting and begging for hours. It didn't help though. Nothing did. They wouldn't let me in to talk to Kate and she never came out.

That is until the next morning. I was awakened by Sarah kicking the shit out of me in my ribcage. Not a good way to wake up. Of course sleeping out in the hall wasn't a good way to sleep, either. There was nothing good going on right now.

I saw Kate come out the next morning and for a moment I thought I might be dreaming it. I jumped up, off the floor, and started running after her once I realized that this was no dream.

"Kate! Kate, please talk to me," I yelled after her as I ran after her.

"Emmett, go away. I don't want to see you anymore. Don't you get that?" My heart broke as she said that over her shoulder to me. Didn't want to see me anymore? Why? What the fuck?

I grabbed her arm and spun her around to face me. This was it. We were going to get shit out in the open. Right here. Right now. She looked down at my hand and then back up at me. She gave me one hell of a nasty look. So I quickly removed my hand before she started screaming "rape" or something. "Kate, don't I at least deserve the chance to defend myself?"

She seemed to think about it for a minute before speaking. "Fine, but I have to be to class soon. So you better hurry up and talk as I walk." She turned and started walking away from me. I caught up to her and started asking her about what happened between us to make her want to end it.

"Can you at least tell me what I did? Kate, I don't even know what I did to upset you so bad. Please."

She looked at me. "I had a nice little visit from an ex of your's yesterday. She told me all about you."

I stopped her right there. "What do you mean? What did she tell you?"

"She told me how you met her at a club, got her to fall for you, and then you went and cheated on her. So I'm ending this," she pointed between the two of us, "before you have a chance to do the same to me. I refuse to be treated like she was." She turned and started walking again.

"What? I've never cheated in my life and I especially wouldn't cheat on you. I like you too much. There's no one else I want to be with. Please, you have to believe me. I would never cheat on anyone. I have too much respect for women to do that. You know I do. Why would I cheat?"

She paused for a moment. She seemed to be thinking about what I had said. Was I getting through to her? Was she realizing I was telling the truth. I just didn't know. "I don't know, Emmett. I don't. What I do know is that right now I have to get to class. Give me time. Let me think."

"I can do that." With that she turned and walked away. I didn't know what to do. I figured the only thing I could do was go on with my day. Unfortunately, that meant another boring as hell day at work.

I went home, showered, and went to the hell that I called the office. The whole day, Kate was on my mind. It was torture. I couldn't call her. I couldn't do anything but sit there and think about her.

I picked up the phone and called in some support. He answered on the third ring. "Hey, man. Wanna go out for drinks tonight?"

"Sure," my best friend said. "Want to see if Jake wants to come too?"

"Yeah, call him up for me. Meet me at "Henderson's Bar" after work." I told him.

"Alright. See ya then, Em."

"Bye, Paul." I hung up the phone and sighed deeply. At least tonight I would be able to drown my sorrows with my best friends with me.

Later that night, Paul, Jake, and I were sitting at the bar with drinks in our hands. I wasn't paying attention to any of the women there. I didn't care about them. The only woman I cared about hated me at the moment because of some lie.

"I'm telling ya, bro. You need to get her alone. Get her to tell you what's going on," Jake said to me. He took a drink and I thought about what he said.

"I want her to tell me on her own though," I tried to reason with him.

"Ain't gonna work, man. You're gonna have to corner her and make her tell you what happened before, in her past. It's the only way y'all can move on. If you don't know who she is, then how do you know if you even want to fight for her?" Paul said.

He had a point. How did I know that I wanted to fight for her, if I didn't even know who she was? Who was Kate really? What had made Kate who she was today? I didn't know and if I didn't know the answers to those questions, then how could I answer the most important one: Did I still want her?

So I did what Jake had suggested. The next day, I waited outside Kate's apartment. I watched as Amie and then later, Sarah left the apartment. That left Kate in there all by herself. I walked up the stairs and stood outside her door. I took a deep breath. I decided to try the knob before knocking. I was afraid if she saw it was me out here, she wouldn't open the door. To my surprise, I found the door unlocked. While it did worry me that she left herself practically wide open like that, it made me happy. At least I didn't have to worry about airing our dirty laundry for the neighbors again.

I walked into the apartment. At first I didn't see her, but then I went to her room. There she was sitting on her bed with pictures surrounding her. I don't know what caught her attention, but all of a sudden she looked up at me. The shock on her face was evident.

"What the fuck are you doing in here? Don't you know how to fucking knock, Emmett? You can't just come barging in here," she said as she hurriedly picked up the pictures.

"I had to see you, Kate. You wouldn't have talked to me about things any other way," I said as I grabbed at one of the pictures. "Who is this?" It was a picture of a man with a little girl.

"None of your damn business. Now give me that and get out of my damn house," she said as she tried to grab the picture out of my hand. I moved it out of her reach just in time.

"Not until you start being straight with me, Kate. Who is this?" I asked showing her the picture.

"It's no one. Give me the damn picture," she said as she started getting off the bed.

"Tell me the truth, Kate. Why won't you talk to me? Why won't you be straight with me, dammit?" She came up to me and tried to grab the picture out of my hand again. I held it above my head.

"Fuck you, Emmett. You don't have the right to ask me about anything anymore. We're over or did you not get that when I wouldn't answer the door for you the other night?" She made a grab for the picture again. When I still held it over my head where she couldn't get it, she punched me in the chest. "Give it to me, Emmett!" she yelled.

"Not until you tell me the truth. Tell me what I want to know and I'll give it to you and then I'll leave."

"You want the truth? You want to know the truth about me? Huh?" she yelled at me.

"Yes," I whispered. She backed away from me running her hands through her hair.

"FINE! You want the truth? Well here it is. My father beat me when I was a kid. That picture in your hand? That's him and me. That was just from when I was too small to beat the shit out of. He would just beat the hell out of my mom at that point. Then I got big enough.

"He'd beat the shit out of both of us every night. Every morning he'd beat me before school. He'd tell me that that was for the things I was going to do that day. Then he'd get home from work and he'd beat me again. That was for the things I did do that day. It didn't matter if I did anything or not. I was still going to get beat.

"My mom had to have dinner on the table when he walked through that door or he was gonna beat her. He'd better have a cool beer in his hands at all times or mom was gonna get beat. If I did something wrong, he'd beat me and then beat her for letting me do it.

"You want the truth? You wanna know why I don't talk about my parents? It's because I don't have any. My father killed my mom. He beat her to death. Five years ago today. He's in prison for the rest of his natural life. No possibility of parole. That's it. That's the fucking truth. Now get the fuck out of my apartment."

She collapsed on her bed. Tears running down her face. Something inside of me told me there was more to it. I don't know why, I just had a feeling in the pit of my stomach that there was more to her story than she had told me. The fact of the matter was though, at that point, I wasn't about to make her say anything else. I felt like enough of an ass already.

I stood there staring at her. What should I do? I had no clue. Should I comfort her? Should I leave like she asked? What was the right thing?

It didn't take me long to figure it out. I walked over to her and gently took her into my arms. "I'm sorry," I whispered to her.

She started squirming, trying to get out of my arms. I only held her tighter. She eventually gave up and relented into my arms. She sat there for hours, crying her heart out. She cried her self to sleep. I laid her down and looked at her.

Of all the things I thought she was hiding, I never would have guessed that. I felt like such an ass.


	5. Chapter 5

Waking up next to Emmett this morning was strange. I never expected him to want to see me. Let alone, sleep next to me all night after what I told him last night. So why was he? Why was he still here? He should have gone running for the door, but he didn't. Why? It made no sense to me. Why would he want to be with someone like me? Someone who had let her dad beat up on her?

Of course he didn't know the full truth. He didn't know all of my past. If he knew that then he would definitely run for the hills. He would never want me if he knew the full truth that was Kate. He would never ever stick around after that. Maybe that's why I didn't tell him everything last night. Maybe that's why I held back. I was falling for him. I didn't want him to leave. I wanted him to stay.

I could never trust anyone but Amie and Sarah with that kind of information. And the fact of the matter was that the only reason they knew was because they had witnessed some of what had happened. I had no choice but to tell them everything. I don't know why they stuck around, probably out of pity, but what ever it was that made them stay, I was thankful for it. I was thankful for the friendship I had with them. I wouldn't give it up for anything. But the question remained, were they only my friends out of pity?

I untangled myself from Emmett's arms and legs, and slowly crawled out of the bed. He groaned as I stood up. I turned around and looked at him. His eyes slowly opened to look at me. He looked so gorgeous when he woke up. I needed to take this all in and remember it for always because I wasn't sure how long I could keep the rest of my past a secret. And I knew for sure that once he found out about it, he would run as fast as he could away from me.

"Where are you going?" he sleepily asked me. He gruffness to his voice made me want things I knew I could never have. It was killing me to stay where I was and not go attack those full lips of his with my own.

"I'm going to go take a shower and get dressed," I answered looking at the floor. I figured that was the safest place to look at the moment.

"Come here," he said sitting up. I was thankful at that moment that he was still fully dressed. I wasn't sure how I would react if he was only in his boxers. My panties got a little wetter at that thought. No matter how upset I was at the moment, I couldn't control my hormones.

I walked toward him slowly. Concentrating on only taking one step at a time. When I was about a foot away from him, he grabbed my hand in one of his own. He raised his other hand to my chin and forced my face up toward his. "Look at me, Kate." I did. "Kate, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong? I'm just going to take a shower."

"Kate," he huffed. "if you're upset because you told me about your past last night, please don't be. I'm not going to leave you because of that. You had no control over it. It wasn't your fault. You were a child. You couldn't have stopped him from beating you or your mother. In my eyes he was a coward. A coward that had to hit a woman and child to make himself feel like a man. My only regret is that I can't kill that cowardly asshole. So please don't be upset that you told me."

The tears were welling up in my eyes. I could only nod. I was afraid if I opened my mouth to speak my voice would betray me. He squeezed my hand and let it go. I turned and walked into the bathroom. I slowly and methodically washed every inch of my body. As I stood in the shower washing myself, I couldn't help my thoughts. They wandered back to Emmett and what he had told me. Was he serious? Or was he just saying those things to be nice? Was he really going to stick around? Or was he going to leave me the first chance he got?

I couldn't be sure about answers to any of my questions. How had my life gone from easy and carefree to this? To a life where I questioned everything. I hated this. I hated questioning everyone in my life. I hated questioning their motives in everything they do. I hated my life.

I stepped out of the shower in a daze. I didn't know what to do. How can you trust people's motives when you feel like they're only doing it out of pity?

I dried myself off and made my way to my bedroom with the towel wrapped around my body. I was shocked when I stepped in the room. My bed was made, room clean. I noticed something was on my pillow. I walked over and there sat a piece of paper on top of my pillow with _To: Kate_ written on it in unknown handwriting. I picked it up and opened the paper.

_Dear Kate,_

_I hope you are feeling better after your shower. I'm sorry I'm not still there when you get done. I saw the time and realized I was running late for work and had to leave. I promise I will come by right after work to see how you're doing. Maybe tomorrow we can go to dinner. I really hope you feel better. _

_Emmett_

I reread the note again and again. I was so confused. Did he still want to be with me after everything he heard last night? Did he truthfully still care about me? No, it's not possible. Who would want to be with that?

I shook my head and put the paper on my nightstand. There's no way he really wants to be with me. No, not possible. I just had to enjoy this while I could. I had to enjoy his company while he was around. That's all I could do. He would admit sooner or later that he was only still around because of pity.

I got dressed and laid on the couch in the living room. I didn't care to do anything today. There was no reason to. Who did I have to please? Emmett? No. I only had myself to please now. And I wanted to just sit around the house. I didn't want to put on makeup. I didn't want to eat. I didn't want to go shopping. I didn't want to paint. The only thing I wanted to do was lay on the couch watching TV.

That lasted only until Sarah and Amie came home. I was curled up on the couch under a blanket watching TV. The girls came in and saw me. They immediately were by my side, feeling my forehead, and asking if I felt ok.

"Girls, I'm fine. Just leave me alone," I said pushing their hands away. I curled further under the blankets, wishing for the silence and solitude back.

The girls shared a look. "Alright, if Bitch Kate is out, something happened. What happened? Last night you and Emmett were so cute cuddled up together on your bed. No, bitch Kate is out?"

I glared at them. How could they be so callus as to say we were so cute cuddled up together last night? Way to cut a hole in my heart, Ladies. "What does it matter? He's going to leave me. Y'all will leave me. Everyone's going to leave me because everyone's only around because of pity. So what does anything matter?" I asked, moving to get up from the couch and go back to my room.

Amie stopped me and got up in my face. "You listen to me. I don't know who put that bullshit in your mind but it's just that, bullshit. Fucking bullshit. You know that we care about you. We aren't here out of pity. We're here out of love, damn it. We love you. Always have and always will. You're not some pity trip for us. You're not some charity case. You're our white sister, damn it and that's what you're going to stay. We love you. Now, tell me what the fuck happened!"

I swallowed the tears back. I couldn't let them lose. "I, uh, told Emmett about my dad. He trapped me, wouldn't leave until I told him about my past. So, I told him about my father. I bawled for hours, finally, fell asleep. I guess he fell asleep too. This morning it's just felt weird. It seems like people are only around me for pity, to make poor little Kate feel better. I don't want to be that. I don't want to be poor little Kate. But I know that's the only reason Emmett's still around. He won't admit it right now, but I know. He could have any woman out there. Why would he want to be with one like me? One that's broken? One that can't love with her whole heart because … well, because. It's ridiculous and stupid of me to think he could or would, for that matter." I slumped back into the couch. Everything was out there. I had let it all out. Now I just felt empty.

The girls went into the kitchen for a few minutes. I don't know what they were doing but Amie came over to me and said "I'm going to go out for a few minutes. Do you want anything?"

I shook my head and laid down. Sarah sat down on the floor in front of me. "Kate, what would make you feel like we were only your friends because of pity?" she asked in a quiet small voice.

I sighed and rubbed at my face. I knew this was going to come but I had hoped they would just let it pass. I did not want to have to answer this. "When I told Emmett what I went through, the old feelings crept back up on me. I feel like the beatings is all I am. I don't want it to be but I feel like it is. I feel like that's all I am. I'm just some girl who got beat as a child. I'm just an abuse case, a statistic. Honestly, who would want to be with a girl like that? Whether as a friend or a girlfriend, who would want to be with some girl who got beat most her life, who went through what I have?"

"Kate, did you tell him the rest? Did you tell him about Edward?" She looked at me with concern in her eyes.

"If I did that he would run for the hills. I know it's selfish but I don't want him to leave me. I'm falling for him, Sarah. I can't let him go. If I told him that I'm dirty and nasty like that? He'd be gone for sure. I can't do it. I just can't." The tears silently streamed down my face at the thought.

"How do you know he would leave you if you told him, if you won't give him the chance? Personally, I really don't think he would, Kate. I really don't. He's an admirable man."

"But how can you be so sure?"

"How can you?"

Amie chose that moment to make herself known. She cleared her throat and walked into the room with bags in her hands. "I agree with Sarah on this one, Kate. You can't know what he'll do if you never give the man a chance." She set the bags down on the coffee table in front of Sarah and me. "Now, time to cheer you up."

"Oh God. This can't be good," I said. "When Amie wants to cheer me up, there's usually alcohol involved."

She pulled bottle after bottle of alcohol from bags. "And this time is no exception. But this time, we're adding sexy men." My eyes went wide. She hadn't called Emmett to come over had she? "Chill out, chica." She pulled DVD's from the bags next. "By sexy men, I meant Dean and Sam Winchester."

She put a DVD in the player. When she was done she stood back up and handed me a drink. "Now, we're going to drink every time Sam says 'Dean'."

I chuckled at that. I had seen _Supernatural_. I knew I would be drunk in no time. Sure enough by the end of the first episode, I was buzzed. By the end of the second, I was drunk, my panties were wet, and I was finally able to laugh. Something about watching Dean Winchester always put me in a better mood. Add that to drinking, and….well it was a deadly combination. Thank God for friends like mine. Because Amie had known exactly what I needed.

After the second episode, Amie and Sarah deemed that I was drunk enough. One of them, I didn't pay attention to who, went to the CD player and put on some Latina music. Next thing I knew Romeo's sexy, throaty voice was blasting from the speakers. They weren't kidding when they said tonight was going to be full of alcohol and sexy men. Romeo's voice sent shivers down my spine every time I heard it. It's like just hearing his voice made me want to act sexier.

I laid my head back on the couch, laughing. Both of them grabbed one of my hands each and pulled me up from my seat. They pulled me in between the two of them and we stood their dancing with each other. Our hips moving in rhythm with the music. Our hands were raised above our heads as we danced close together.

We heard the doorbell ring. I didn't stop dancing as I went to answer it. My hips moved side to side as I opened the door to reveal Emmett. I stopped dancing long enough to pull him inside. I didn't let go of his hand as I closed the door with a kick. I pulled him into the living room so he could dance with us.

"Hey, Emmett," the ladies greeted him.

"Hey. Did I interrupt a drinking party?" he asked with a chuckle.

I took a drink and started dancing close to Emmett, rubbing myself on him. I didn't pay any attention to anything but Romeo's voice through the speakers.

It was Sarah, handing him a drink, who answered, "Just having a girl's day. We needed it."

"Well, I can't say I mind," he said starting to dance with me. I moved my body back up his, and looked into his eyes. Through the alcohol, I realized something. I wasn't just starting to fall in love with him. I was almost completely there.

I swung my hips as I worked my way up his body. With eyes locked, I stood on tip toes. He ducked his head to meet mine. Our lips met and it was like fireworks going off in my head. It was like those kisses in romance novels where it talks about the woman's toe curling. Mine did that.

He licked my lower lip asking for entrance. I opened my mouth to him and our tongues immediately tangled together in a romantic dance. My hands went to his hair and fisted there, pulling him closer, as if it were possible.

All of a sudden, the front door slammed against the wall. Emmett and I jumped apart as if we were teenagers caught by our parents. We looked toward the door and my heart dropped. When I saw who was standing there, I wish, not for the first time, that I could hide under a rock and never return to the real world.


End file.
